"The women of Bikini Kill let guitarist Billy Karren be in their feminist punk band, but only if he's willing to just "do some shit." Being a feminist dude is like that. We may ask you to "do some shit" for the band, but you don't get to be Kathleen Hannah."--@heatherurehere

Saturday, September 16, 2006

Nonthreatening

I was reminded today of a conversation my father recounted, as we were walking home late at night. He mentioned to me that a friend of his, a very tall black man, was fond of late-night walks but found himself frequently scaring people he happened across. The man's solution? If he whistled while he walked, people who were otherwise terrified of blacks found him less threatening.

Though I hate to compare the oppressors with the oppressed, it reminded me of another bit of advice for late-night walks. Several times I have seen feminists advise men to cross the street in order to avoid appearing to follow a lone woman at night.

Though I understand that women are well within their rights to be wary, it got me wondering: what else can a man do, either with strangers or friends, in order to be as nonthreatening as possible?